1. Field of Invention
The present invention pertains to the field of computer systems. More particularly, this invention relates to a portable user interface.
2. Art Background
Computer systems typically provide users with access to a wide variety of digital information and services. For example, desktop computer systems usually provide a wide variety of applications along with Internet access. In addition, desktop computer systems commonly provide powerful processing and memory resources and graphics capabilities. A typical desktop computer system includes a large display and a box or tower that houses resources such as processors, memory, and mass storage, etc. Such a desktop computer system may also include a variety of peripheral devices such as printers, scanners, and communication devices such a modems, etc.
A variety of applications in home and commercial environments may benefit from portable access to the types of digital information and services provided by desktop computer systems. Unfortunately, the relatively high weight and large bulk of the display and tower arrangement of desktop computers usually precludes their use in portable applications.
A variety of systems exist that provide portable access to computer-based information. Such systems include laptop and tablet computers, wireless Internet appliances, and thin client devices. Each of these types of systems has a variety of disadvantages.
Laptop and tablet computers are portable but are typically more costly and less capable than desktop systems. In addition, laptop and tablet computers usually have fewer available peripherals in comparison to desktop systems and the peripherals that are available usually have a higher cost in comparison to desktop systems. Moreover, laptop and tablet computers are usually not upgradeable, and are therefore prone to more rapid obsolescence in comparison to desktop systems.
A typical wireless Internet appliance is a computer having a tablet-like form factor along with sufficient processing resources for executing a web browser. Such an appliance usually communicates with a base station via a wireless link and the base station is usually connected via modem to access the Internet. Unfortunately, the limited resources that make such devices portable usually cannot support the wide variety of powerful applications that are available to desktop systems. In addition, such limited resources usually precludes multimedia handling of audio, video, and 3D graphics which are commonly available with desktop systems. Moreover, such appliances usually have non-standard operating systems which limit the availability of web browser plug-ins in comparison to desktop computer systems. Furthermore, such systems are usually not upgradeable and are therefore subject to rapid obsolescence.
A thin client device usually includes a processor and a wireless link to a desktop computer. The wireless link is typically used to relay graphics system calls from the desktop computer to the processor in the portable display which then renders the image. Unfortunately, such an arrangement usually limits the type of graphics that is supported in comparison to desktop computers. In addition, such an arrangement is usually unsuitable for applications such as steaming video and video games due to the relatively low bandwidth of the wireless link in comparison to the high bandwidth CPU/graphics data paths in desktop systems.